


Gather Them Up

by Vodkassassin



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Crew as Family, EVERYTHING IS GREAT, Local blind bandit annoyed at always being left out, Not sure about any pairings yet, Southern Water Tribe, Time Travel, Zuko Joins The Gaang Early (Avatar), Zuko gives off Big Brother Vibes, and everyone can sense them, and tbh so it the rest of the Gaang, no more fucks to give, the tribe and the crew slowly adopt each other and its great, toph is seriously pissed, zuko is an old man in a teenager’s body, zuko’s crew is ride or die
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-26
Updated: 2020-12-26
Packaged: 2021-03-10 18:01:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,216
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28331286
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vodkassassin/pseuds/Vodkassassin
Summary: Firelord Zuko goes to sleep in the royal chambers, and wakes up on a rickety ship that he hasn’t seen for decades. His joints are free of all aches and pains, and his mind is — exasperated.He hopes he’s not the only one of his friends that the spirits have decided to mess with. It would suck to be doing this alone.
Relationships: Aang & Southern Water Tribe, Aang & Zuko’s Crew (Avatar), Iroh & Zuko (Avatar), The Gaang & Zuko (Avatar), Water Tribe & Zuko (Avatar), Zuko & Zuko's Crew (Avatar), Zuko’s Crew & Southern Water Tribe
Comments: 62
Kudos: 617





	Gather Them Up

He opens his eyes and sees the rickety steel underfloor of the upper deck staring back at him, the too-firm bed beneath him rocking back and forth. 

It’s been a while, since he’d slept on something so hard. He isn’t used to it anymore. Ah, it seems that he’s once again been spoiled by the luxury of palace life. 

Come to think of it, it’s been a while since he’s been on a ship, too. And that rickety panel above him, slightly rusted at the edges and texture paint peeling off ever-so slightly, is vaguely familiar….

Zuko narrows his eyes.

He kicks his legs free of the blankets and rolls off the mattress, catching himself on his palms before he can fall to the floor. He stares down in consternation at his hands, tanner than they’ve been in years — despite his friends’ efforts to get him out into the sun. Work often keeps him squirreled away within interior halls and conference rooms.

And these hands… they’re small. Dry and chapped as if by supremely cold weather. That hasn’t happened since Katara had shown him the secret to keeping skin soft despite the low temperatures of her homeland. 

Zuko pushes up off the floor and, growing uneasy at how the room he is in is more and more familiar with each passing second, turns on his heel to peer over at the mirror that he knows is hung on the far left wall. 

The young teenager that stares back at him is the image of someone that he’d promised himself he’d never be again. 

The Firelord presses a hand over his face briefly, taking in a controlled breath. He stands there for a moment to collect himself, and then crosses the room to the drawers in the corner.

He exchanges the sleep clothes for a training outfit, and then leaves swiftly through the door.

He passes by people in the hall, people dressed in armor that has not been the standard for  _ decades _ , men and women whose faces he hasn’t seen in nearly just as long, and he scowls.

This does not strike any of the people he comes across as strange. They salute him as he passes by, and Zuko almost wants to scoff aloud at how fragile his younger self’s ego had been, once upon a time. Almost everyone in the palace knows that Firelord Zuko does not require a bow upon greeting outside of official event.

Just another severe difference between the him of now and the him of his childhood. 

Zuko is pleased with how he has changed. 

Still, it makes him want to roll his eyes. What a  _ brat _ . It’s amazing that Commander Jee has stayed with him for as long as the man has. 

No, he’d be Lieutenant Jee, in this setting. 

Zuko stalks forward without a change in his pace, stride long and quick as if he had somewhere to be. Which, he does. This is going to be rather unpleasant, and he’d like to get it out of the way as soon as possible. 

Well, he  _ could _ just pinch himself, but he knows that wouldn't work. Not on him. 

Toph’s special brand of affection has thickened his skin, certainly. 

He takes the stairs two at a time, bursting out onto the upper deck. Crew members turn to stare at him in surprise, and — oh, there’s Uncle, just... standing there. Which, why wouldn’t he be?

Zuko looks away, gaze locking on the edge of the deck, the bulwark that separates the ship from the sea it floats in. His steps do not falter. 

“Ah, Prince Zuko!” He hasn’t heard that voice in— too long. Far too long. Years. Pinch, he needs a pinch! “You are awake astonishingly early.”

“Your observational skills are unparalleled,” he comments dryly, apparently unable to help himself. He does not remove his eyes from the bulwark. Only a few more steps. 

Uncle sounds a little startled when he speaks next. “Well — Is there some sort of special occasion that I am not aware of, nephew? ...Prince Zuko?”

Zuko lifts up a leg and plants one foot on top of the bulwark, heaving himself up onto it. There’s a few mutterings of confusion from the crew members that are watching him. It’s probably more entertainment than they’ve had in weeks. He will allow it. 

“Prince Zuko?”

Zuko steps forward out into the great blue, plunging down into icy waters. 

“Zuko!”

If anything will wake him up, it’ll be the abrupt shock of the southern ocean’s chill.

* * *

Zuko does not, in fact, wake up. 

Which goes to say that he is already awake, and now even more awake than he had been before his little swim. 

“Of all the ridiculous —!” Uncle is ranting. He sounds a little miffed, but Zuko knows from experience that it’s only because the old man is concerned. “What in the world possessed you to throw yourself overboard, Prince Zuko? Is this some archaic, lesser known meditation technique that I am not aware of?”

Hilarious. As if there is a technique of meditation that his uncle has not studied, even as a joke. Zuko hides a vague smile behind the cup of tea that he has pressed to his lips. 

Uncle is pacing. He only does this when he’s really worried. Whoops. 

In Zuko’s defence, he hadn’t entirely  _ believed _ yet that his current circumstances were altogether  _ real _ .

The retired war general turns on him, scowling heavily, and his blood relation to Zuko has never been quite so stark. 

“Will my reckless nephew please explain to me his thought process, please,” the man demands, “because I find myself at a loss for words!”

For being at a loss for words, Uncle has been ranting at him for a good hour now. After he’d had the crew fish him from the sea and wrapped Zuko in quite a few layers of towels, of course. His skin feels like it’s been rubbed raw. 

Zuko lowers his tea, placing the cup on the table. Uncle stares at him, as if he’s not sure who it is that’s sitting in front of him — It’s likely the man is confused by the calmness that Zuko carries himself with. It makes sense. He and his younger self could not be any more different.

Still, it hurts a little, having Uncle look at him with such an expression. 

“Uncle,” he says. “What is our course?”

Uncle blinks. The man watches him carefully for a moment, before answering. 

“We are on the same route that we have been following for weeks. Captain Hei drew it right in front of you, don’t you remember? Are you feeling alright, Prince Zuko?”

Perfect. They’re in the southern ocean, and are not fleeing to warmer waters. This means that they have yet to encounter the Southern Water tribe yet, and the fact that Uncle didn’t say anything about chasing the strange spirit light that Aang sent up into the sky after being broken from the iceberg means that Katara and Sokka have yet to find him. 

Zuko stands up. He has a pretty good idea of when exactly he is, and it’s time to make some plans. 

“Go and collect Captain Hei and C—Lieutenant Jee, please. I would like to set a new course, effective immediately.”

**Author's Note:**

> idk I just felt like it


End file.
